In the prior art U.S. Pat. No. 6,460,481 (Young) discloses a cake decorator that has an axial cylinder and a powered piston controlled by twisting an axial rotary actuator switch in one direction or another.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,047,858 (Romer) discloses a device for applying frosting or icing to a cake or pastry from a cartridge containing pastry dough, frosting or icing. The device has a walled cartridge container and a hand-held gun for dispensing pastry dough, icing or frosting. The device consists of a tube defining side walls of a compressed air chamber, a cap is arranged to seal an end of the tube and define a top of the compresses air chamber. A plunger rod is disposed within the tube. A sealing washer is connected to the rod to provide an air seal with an inside surface of the tube, the sealing washer defining a lower wall of compressed air chamber. Inlet in the cap or tube located to allow air into compressed air chamber. Valve structure associated with air inlet for controlling the air pressure in the compressed air chamber. A container lid connected to a lower portion of the tube the plunger rod extending through the lid. A container body having an opening that seals with container lid and a container outlet in a portion opposite the opening. A hand held gun having a gun valve for dispensing pastry dough, icing or frosting. A hose connecting the container outlet to the gun. A finger trigger of the hand-held gun connected to gun valve whereby when pastry dough, frosting or icing is in the container body the finger trigger is activated, the gun valves open allowing the flow of pastry, dough or icing.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,101,968 (Fitzgibbons, et al.) discloses a motor and gear train driven by the motor, the train adapted to selectively engage a gear rack secured to the compression element to drive it down to squeeze the collapsible frosting container. When the train has moved into engagement, it closes a switch activating the motor.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,152,333 (Binder) discloses an apparatus for extrusion and metered delivery of free-flowing substances, having a housing having a receiving space, openable at least on one side, for a disposable material package having an expulsion nozzle with a compressed-air connection and having, on the side opposite the expulsion nozzle, a piston that is displaceable in the direction of the expulsion nozzle in the receiving space or in the disposable material package, and pushes the substance ahead of it and thereby ejects it from the expulsion nozzle, compressed air being fed from the compressed-air connection to the side of the piston facing away from the expulsion nozzle.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,026,985 (Elliott) discloses a food dispenser gun, comprising a tube holding a quantity of an extrudable food product, a piston sealingly engaged with an interior of the tube, a rod coupled to the piston and an incremental dispenser engaged with the rod and the tube, the incremental dispenser comprising a trigger, or an advancement lever operable to move the rod in a first direction relative to the incremental dispenser in response to the trigger and a retrograde lock operable to prevent the rod from moving in a second direction, wherein the advancement lever and the retrograde lock are completely enclosed by a housing of the incremental dispenser.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,405,050 (Walsh) discloses an apparatus for dispensing viscous fluids, such as adhesives, sealants, caulks is actuated by an electromagnetic coil assembly in conjunction with a magnet mounted to a plunger. Energizing the coil assembly produces an electromagnetic field which cooperates with the magnetic field to cause the plunger to open. Closing results from reversing the electromagnetic field.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,258,864 (KARAMANOLIS) discloses an automatic toothpaste dispenser employs a roller-type squeeze device that is driven along the toothpaste tube simultaneously with the opening of a gate that permits the toothpaste to flow. After the desired amount of toothpaste has been dispensed, the roller is automatically retracted and the gate is simultaneously closed. However, the retraction of the gate only continues until the gate is closed, which results in a ratchet-like effect, the roller being retracted a smaller distance than that by which it is advanced.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,980,144 (DEBOURG) discloses a hand held dispenser for thermoplastic material including a casing forming a manual holding element and enclosing a space for receiving amass of thermoplastic material in a solid state, the casing having an open outlet end communicating with the space; a component for advancing the thermoplastic material toward the open end of the casing, and a heating element for heating the thermoplastic material to a flowable state, wherein the heating element has a low thermal inertia, is arranged in a substantially homogeneous manner across a surface disposed opposite the open end and having dimensions which correspond to dimensions of the open end and wherein the heating element further acts to distribute thermoplastic material in a flowable state in the form of a sheet on a receiving surface.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,460,731 (ESTELLE) discloses an electrically operated fluid dispenser for dispensing a pattern of viscous fluid onto a substrate during a run mode. The dispenser is turned off and does not dispense the viscous fluid during a standby mode of operation. The dispenser includes a dispenser body having an outlet and an armature disposed in the dispenser body for movement between an opened position allowing a fluid flow from the outlet and a closed position preventing the fluid flow from the outlet. A coil is mounted adjacent the armature and selectively generates an electromagnetic field for moving the armature between the opened and closed positions. A controller includes different apparatus and methods for using the coil as a heater as well as providing other heat transfer devices on the dispensing valve to maintain a constant temperature either, during only the run mode or, during both, the run and the standby modes.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,968,873 (CARIDDI) shows a bagel or pastry filling device attachable to one end of a standard and well-known pastry filling or cake decorating gun. The inventive concept combines a bent piece of tubing made from any suitable material wherein one end has a sharp edge which is insertable into a bagel, donut, piece of pastry, and whose other end is inserted into a funnel where it is held in place by means of an insert placed inside the flared opening of the funnel which, while usually made of plastic, may be made of any suitable material. The pastry filling attachment is then inserted into a nut, usually made of plastic, which in turn engages a length of plastic tubing having external male threads.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,935,74 (Perkins) shows a pastry extruder. The extruder uses a manually operated trigger to move the plunger inside the barrel of the dispenser. The dispensable material is contained inside the barrel of the dispenser. If the user wants to change dispensable materials they must clean out the barrel before reloading with the new material.